


Lost Like your Father

by bluestrawberryiii



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Original Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Gen, but uh, certainly not anything outside of tfa, here we are, this prob wont get too dark because i aint good with that but idk be ready i guess, you know i always told myself i would never write a star wars fic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-06-23
Updated: 2016-06-24
Packaged: 2018-07-16 17:25:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,850
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7277161
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bluestrawberryiii/pseuds/bluestrawberryiii
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“If there's a bright center to the universe, you're on the planet that it's farthest from.”</p><p>(Canon-divergence fic because I kept asking what would happen if Luke hadn't gotten out of the carbon-freezer in time and nobody could give me a good enough answer so dangit I'm finding out for myself. Takes place in the canon universe up until Luke and Vader's face-off in the carbon-freezing chamber on Cloud City.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Luke

The shocking cold hit him only slightly before the floor did. And since his eyes didn't seem to be working, the only thing Luke really had to concentrate on was the cold, hard metal floor currently pressing into his cheek. There were other presences nearby, but he was too disoriented to get any useful reading on them. They were like shadowed smudges at the edge of his mind.

“Help him up,” said one of the presences, old and clipped. It sounded muffled and echoey, faded by the rushing in Luke’s ears as blood started to circulate again.

A hand grabbed onto his arm and another hooked under his armpit, pulling him onto his wobbly legs. It wasn't exactly a quick transition, but it made his head spin anyways. The rushing got louder.

“Where…” he tried to ask, but his lips refused to form the sounds and it came out more as a tired exhale, quiet and entirely useless.

Another voice spoke up, this one deep and familiar. “Welcome...son.”

Well, that wasn't right. Sure, the voice was familiar, but more in a way that sent his heart into a violent frenzy; not in a fatherly way. Besides, his father was dead. Obi-Wan had said so himself.

Luke tried to blink away the fogginess clouding his vision. Now, instead of black, his vision was a mixture of dark and light gray smudges. It was a small victory, but if the nagging feeling in the base of his neck told him anything, it was that victories were going to be in short supply. He would take it.

One of the darker smudges moved towards where Luke was propped up. As it neared, its presence became clearer, until finally it stopped right in front of Luke, filling up his blurred vision and foggy mind: Vader.

“Wh…” He tried again, getting the same wheezing exhale as before. He took a deep breath and forced it, biting out every single syllable with excruciating deliberation. “Why am I here?”

“Do you not remember?” asked the other voice. It was a simple question, but it sounded annoyingly condescending. Luke guessed it was the Emperor.

The last thing in his memory was of that dark room on Bespin. Vader had been there, and he could vaguely recollect falling. Then a loud hissing and nothing else. But he wasn't about to give the Emperor the satisfaction of an answer, so he stayed silent and glared into the hazy gray expanse of the room.

“I thought not.”

Luke blinked some more and willed his eyesight to recover. It didn't work. What would Han be doing right now?

Probably mouthing off and getting himself killed, which wouldn't do Luke much good.

What about Leia?

She would probably be assessing the situation. Gathering information and figuring out a way to escape.

That was a good start.

Luke pulled up to his full height. He recovered his arms from the guards next to him and tried to ignore the soggy heavy feeling that still leadened his limbs. “Why,” he said, trying to imitate the same composure Leia always had, while working with a mound of meat for a tongue. “Am I here?”

“To claim your destiny, of course,” Vader answered.

“My destiny.” Apparently he couldn't escape hearing about his destiny, even from his enemies. Great.

“Yes, young Skywalker,” the Emperor said. “It is your destiny to join us, and rule the galaxy under my guidance.”

“And if I refuse?” Luke could feel the subtle push in the Emperor’s words, trying to work its way into his mind while it was still recovering from...whatever had happened.

“You won't.” The Emperor shifted, and Luke could just make out a blurry hand being raised before the guards were at his shoulders again. “Take him to his room, Commander,” the Emperor said as Luke was spun around and marched out of the room. “I will see him again in the morning.”

* * *

 

The corridors on the way to his room were dimly lit, making it hard to tell if his vision was improving or not. They passed Stormtroopers and black-clad generals along the way, vague outlines of what Luke knew should be crisp lines and angles. He looked around, trying to memorize the twists and turns they took, but it all looked like a uniform forest of steel and plastic.

They stopped at the end of a corridor, which looked like the prison block he and Han had found Leia in the first Death Star.

“A holding cell?” Luke asked, watching as one of the guards pushed a button, making the doors whoosh open. “I thought I was getting a room.”

“This _is_ your room.” The other guard shoved him in and Luke managed to catch himself before he tumbled down the stairs.

Just as the two were about to shut the doors and leave, Luke shot out a hand. “Wait!”

They turned back towards him, one looking annoyed, the other asking, “What?”

Luke took a deep breath and set his shoulders. How had Obi-Wan done it, in Mos Eisley? He'd just held out his hand and said the words, and that had been it; they got through the checkpoint. It was a bit of a tall order, but it was the best option Luke had.

He held his hand like Obi-Wan had done and tried to layer the Force over his words. “You will take me to the docking bay.”

There was a pause.

The guards hadn't moved away yet. Did it work?

One of them stepped forward.

And laughed.

“Lord Vader said you might try that.”

“See you in the morning, kid.” The second guard stepped forward and closed the doors, which slid shut with a hiss, leaving Luke with only the humming of the lights and his blurred eyes.


	2. Leia

In one day, Leia had managed to lose Han, Luke, and half of C3PO; and in return, she had gained a smuggler whose allegiances had changed twice in just as many hours. It was shaping up to be a great day.

“So,” said Lando, breaking the tense silence that had fallen over the cockpit. “What's the plan?”

“What?”

“The plan.” Lando gestured to the command console. If Leia had had her way, he wouldn't be in charge of the Falcon at all, but she knew he was the better pilot and so she had grudgingly relegated herself to the back seat. “Your friend is still back in the city, and Han is with that bounty hunter. I'd suggest not going back to where Vader is, but it's your call.”

It felt like something in her was tearing. Behind them, Luke was facing down with Darth Vader himself. And ahead, Han was getting farther and farther away every second, on his way to whatever horrible fate awaited him once the bounty hunter turned him in. Either way, it was an impossible choice. But she had to make a decision at some point, and sooner was much better than later.

“Luke knows what he’s doing,” she finally said. She hoped so, anyways. At the very least, he had a weapon, a ship, and the benefit of whatever he had learned on Dagobah from Master Yoda. “We need to go after Han, before that bounty hunter gets any farther away.”

Lando began prepping the hyperdrive. “Well, alright then. Any idea where Boba Fett might be headed?”

She paused. “...Tatooine, I think. Han’s mentioned his debt to Jabba a couple times.” It felt wrong to discuss her friend’s debts, especially with Lando, but she was sure Han wouldn’t mind. Both because it was to save his life, and also because he and Luke had openly railed against Jabba’s debt policies more than once.

Lando punched in the coordinates to Tatooine. “Jabba, huh? Sounds just like his style to send a bounty hunter.” The Falcon sped into hyperspace, blue and white lights skidding across the front window. “Sounds just like Han to get that bad in debt, too.”

It irked Leia to hear Lando talking about Han like that - so familiarly, like it wasn’t entirely his fault that Han was in the mess he was now. What right did he have to act like Han’s friend when he had stabbed the man in the back no more than a couple hours ago?

But Leia held herself back. She could yell at Lando later, when Han was no longer in danger and Luke was safe. But that didn’t mean she couldn’t still be mad.

The Falcon slid back into realspace, revealing a bright tan dot that broke Leia back into reality. She got up out of her seat and moved forward to get a better look. “ _That’s_ Tatooine?” Luke and Han had both attested to how bleak it was, but even knowing that, Leia had still pictured...well, at least a _little_ green. Having grown up on Alderaan, she was used to even the most desolate places having a tuft of grass, or a small dusting of flowers somewhere in the distance. But, as they got closer to the planet, she realized her friends hadn’t been exaggerating. It was quite literally a giant lump of sand.

As the Falcon entered the atmosphere, a wave of heat slowly descended upon the cockpit. From the copilot’s seat, Chewie let out a soft cry. Looking out the window, Leia tried to pick out something that wasn’t light and yellow and grainy. It was not an easy task.

Somehow, Lando managed to locate a plateau with some shade, and he flew the Millennium Falcon down into the small alcove.

“This doesn’t look like a crime boss’ hideout,” Leia said, crossing her arms.

“That’s because it isn’t,” Lando replied. “We can’t just go in and grab him.”

“Well, why not?” As soon as the words left her mouth, Leia knew it was a stupid question. But even though the look Lando gave her perfectly matched the one she was making in her head, she still wanted to punch him for it. Instead, she sighed. “Fine, then. What do we do instead?”

“We scope it out.” Lando pointed out the window. “Chewie, I need you to figure out how far away we are from Jabba’s palace.” Chewie grunted in response and began fiddling with the navigation device. “I haven’t had to actually break in somewhere for a long time, but I’ve been to Jabba’s a couple times, so it shouldn’t be too much trouble getting in…” Lando had begun to flit around the cockpit, fiddling with latches and opening compartments. “We’re gonna need disguises. I’m well-known enough that someone is bound to recognize me, and you sure aren’t getting in looking like that.”

“Like what?” Leia asked, affronted.

He waved his hands around and grabbed a spare tablet from a nearby cabinet. “All...pretty and proper. It's a recipe for disaster, trust me. Chewie, did you find it?”

Chewbacca barked out an answer and Lando nodded. “That should be far enough. So.” He set down the tablet and started jotting down notes. “Now that we know we're safe, we need to figure out how to get in…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> you know whats difficult? writing chewies dialogue thats what. like. what do i do with this? do i say he made a strange bleating sound? do i put "rrrrrr-ghghghghgh" in quotes and call it good??  
> i dont even care about anything else this right here is probably the most difficult challenge of my writing career


End file.
